Story highlights

"When you look at Paris ... nobody had guns but the bad guys. Nobody had guns. Nobody," Trump said

Trump made a similar comment earlier this year on the heels of the terrorist attack in Paris in January

Beaumont, Texas (CNN)Donald Trump said Saturday that the terrorist attacks in Paris "would've been a much different situation" if the city had looser gun laws.

"When you look at Paris -- you know the toughest gun laws in the world, Paris -- nobody had guns but the bad guys. Nobody had guns. Nobody," Trump said at a rally here. "They were just shooting them one by one and then they (security forces) broke in and had a big shootout and ultimately killed the terrorists."

"You can say what you want, but if they had guns, if our people had guns, if they were allowed to carry --" Trump said, pausing as the crowd erupted into raucous applause, "-- it would've been a much, much different situation."

Trump made a similar comment earlier this year on the heels of the terrorist attack in Paris that targeted the headquarters of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish market.

"Isn't it interesting that the tragedy in Paris took place in one of the toughest gun control countries in the world?" Trump tweeted in January.

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A forensic scientist works near a Paris cafe on Saturday, November 14, following a series of coordinated attacks in Paris the night before that killed scores of people. ISIS has claimed responsibility.

Hide Caption

1 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Police are out in force November 14 near La Belle Equipe, one of the sites of the terror attacks.

Hide Caption

2 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Forensic police search for evidence inside the Comptoir Voltaire cafe after the attacks.

Hide Caption

3 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Shoes and a bloody shirt lie outside the Bataclan concert hall on November 14. Most of the fatalities occurred at the Bataclan in central Paris.

Hide Caption

4 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Security forces evacuate people on Rue Oberkampf near the Bataclan concert hall early on November 14.

Hide Caption

5 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Medics evacuate an injured woman on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire near the Bataclan early on November 14.

Hide Caption

6 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Police, firefighters and rescue workers secure the area near the Bataclan concert hall on November 14.

Hide Caption

7 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A man with blood on his shirt talks on the phone on November 14. He is next to the Bataclan theater, where gunmen shot concertgoers and held hostages until police raided the building.

Hide Caption

8 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Police officers patrol the area around Notre Dame cathedral in Paris on November 14.

Victims of the shooting at the Bataclan concert venue in central Paris are evacuated to receive medical treatment on November 14.

Hide Caption

11 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A woman is evacuated from the Bataclan theater early on November 14.

Hide Caption

12 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Forensics are working in the street of Paris after the terrorist attack on Friday, November 13. The words "horror," "massacre" and "war" peppered the front pages of the country's newspapers, conveying the shell-shocked mood.

Hide Caption

13 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Rescuers evacuate an injured person near the Stade de France, one of several sites of attacks November 13 in Paris. Thousands of fans were watching a soccer match between France and Germany when the attacks occurred.

Hide Caption

14 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A survivor of the terrorist attack in the Bataclan is assisted following terror attacks, November 13. The violence at the Bataclan, which involved a hostage-taking, resulted in the highest number of casualties of all the attacks.

Hide Caption

15 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Spectators invade the pitch of the Stade de France stadium after the international friendly soccer match between France and Germany in Saint-Denis.

Hide Caption

16 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Spectators embrace each other as they stand on the playing field of the Stade de France stadium at the end of a soccer match between France and Germany in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, on November 13.

Hide Caption

17 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A body, covered by a sheet, is seen on the sidewalk outside the Bataclan theater.

Hide Caption

18 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Rescuers evacuate an injured person on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, close to the Bataclan concert hall in central Paris.

Hide Caption

19 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Wounded people are evacuated outside the scene of a hostage situation at the Bataclan theater in Paris on November 13.

Hide Caption

20 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A medic tends to a wounded man following the attacks near the Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire.

Hide Caption

21 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A woman walks past police and firefighters in the Oberkampf area of Paris.

Hide Caption

22 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A riot police officer stands by an ambulance near the Bataclan concert hall in central Paris.

Hide Caption

23 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Wounded people are evacuated outside the Bataclan concert hall.

Hide Caption

24 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Police secure the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, following explosions during the soccer match between France and Germany.

Hide Caption

25 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

A wounded man is evacuated from the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, outside Paris.

Hide Caption

26 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Spectators gather on the field of the Stade de France after the attacks. Explosions were heard during the soccer match between France and Germany.

Hide Caption

27 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

French security forces rush in as people are evacuated in the area of Rue Bichat in the 10th District of Paris.

Hide Caption

28 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

People leave the Stade de France after explosions were heard near the stadium during a soccer match between France and Germany on Friday. Paris Deputy Mayor Patrick Klugman told CNN President Francois Hollande was at the match and was evacuated at halftime.

Hide Caption

29 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Victims lay on the pavement outside a Paris restaurant.

Hide Caption

30 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

Rescue workers and medics tend to victims at the scene of one of the shootings, a restaurant in the 10th District. Attackers reportedly used AK-47 automatic weapons in separate attacks across Paris, and there were explosions at the Stade de France.

Hide Caption

31 of 32

Photos:Night of terror: Paris attacks

French security forces move people in the area of Rue Bichat in the 10th District. A witness told BFMTV that firefighters were on the scene to treat the injured.

Hide Caption

32 of 32

Read More

The tweet resurfaced Friday, prompting a swift rebuke from the French ambassador to the U.S. who apparently believed the tweet was issued Friday.

"This message is repugnant in its lack of any human decency. Vulture," French ambassador Gerard Araud wrote in a tweet, which was later deleted.

Trump immediately addressed the tragedy in Paris on Saturday, calling for a moment of silence as he walked on stage to remember the more than 120 people who were killed in a series of coordinated attacks the night before.

Trump ripped President Barack Obama's leadership in the fight against ISIS, noting that Obama said hours before the attacks that the U.S. has "contained" ISIS. "We have leadership who doesn't know what they're doing," Trump said.

He also slammed Obama's decision to allow Syrian refugees into the United States, calling such a move "insane."

"We all have heart and we all want people taken care of, but with the problems our country has, to take in 250,000 -- some of whom are going to have problems, big problems -- is just insane. We have to be insane. Terrible," Trump said.

It's unclear where Trump got the 250,000 figure from. In September, Obama ordered his administration to "scale up" the number of Syrian refugees admitted to the United States, directing his team to prepare for at least 10,000 for this fiscal year. The 10,000 Syrian refugees would be allocated out of a U.S. quota of 75,000 refugee admissions from around the world.

A Senate aide in September said Secretary of State John Kerry told senators that the administration would "seek an additional increase beyond" the worldwide total, potentially as high as 100,000.